Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 99-05-26
MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Thessaloniki, May 26, 1999
SECTIONS
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
NEWS HEADLINES
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH VARTHOLOMEOS TO VISIT THESSALONIKI
[02] GREECE TO PRESENT TRUCE PROPOSAL AT NEXT NATO ENVOYS MEET
[03] HON. PRESIDENT OF MAIN OPPOSITION PARTY TO VISIT BELGRADE
[04] SECOND WAVE OF KOSOVO REFUGEES TO USE THESSALONIKI AIRPORT
[05] BLACK SEA TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT BANK TO OPEN JUNE 1
[06] ALMOST UNANIMOUSLY, GREEKS OPPOSE NATO RAIDS ON SERBIA
[07] MITSOTAKIS WILL MEET WITH MILOSEVIC TOMORROW
[08] TSOCHATZOPOULOS ON THE PEACEKEEPING FORCE IN KOSOVO
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[09] NATO INTENSIFIES RAIDS AGAINST YUGOSLAVIA
[10] DIPLOMATIC EFFORTS CONTINUE IN YUGOSLAVIA
[11] GREEK FM TO MEET WITH US SECRETARY OF STATE TODAY
[12] PRESIDENT OF GREECE TO CONDUCT OFFICIAL VISIT TO BULGARIA
[13] CHERNOMYRDIN:TODAY'S TALKS SHOULD LEAD TO END OF RAIDS
[14] TRIPARTITE HUMANITARIAN AID GIVEN TO RED CROSS IN KOSOVO
[15] TALBOTT ADVOCATES STEP-BY-STEP APPROACH TO KOSOVO
[16] GREECE'S DEVELOPMENT MINISTER IN SOFIA TOMORROW
[17] TALBOTT: BELGRADE HAS NOT MET NATO'S DEMANDS
[18] VUJOVIC: WE WILL NOT YIELD TO THE BOMBING
[19] PRESIDENT STEPHANOPOULOS IS IN SOFIA
[20] BELGRADE: THE TRIAL OF TWO EMPLOYEES OF THE "CARE AUSTRALIA"
HUMANITARIAN ORGANIZATION HAS OPENED
NEWS IN DETAIL
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH VARTHOLOMEOS TO VISIT THESSALONIKI
The Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos will visit the
Thessaloniki suburb of Kalamaria on May 31, the feast of the Holy
Spirit, accompanied by Archbishop
Christodoulos of Athens and All Greece.
The Ecumenical Patriarch, the spiritual leader of all of
the world's Orthodox
Christians, arrived in Greece on May 20 for a two-week visit as
the official guest of the Orthodox Church of Greece.
[02] GREECE TO PRESENT TRUCE PROPOSAL AT NEXT NATO ENVOYS MEET
Greece will present its joint proposal with the Czech
Republic on a 48-hour cease fire in the Yugoslav conflict at the
next sitting of NATO envoys, government spokesperson Dimitris
Reppas stated yesterday.
Mr. Reppas added that Greece supports the G-8 proposals on
Kosovo, stressing that maximum use should be made of the
mediating efforts of Russian special envoy for Kosovo Viktor
Chernomyrdin and Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari.
According to the spokesman, the Greek-Czech proposal will
allow for the strengthening of a peace initiative on the strife-
torn Kosovo.
[03] HON. PRESIDENT OF MAIN OPPOSITION PARTY TO VISIT BELGRADE
The honorary president of Greece's main opposition party, New
Democracy's Konstantinos Mitsotakis, is to travel to Belgrade this
evening where he will have a personal meeting with Yugoslav
President Slobodan Milosevic.
It is not know as of yet whether Mr. Mitsotakis will meet
with Mr. Milosevic prior to or following the latter's talks with
the Russian envoy for Kosovo Viktor Chernomyrdin.
[04] SECOND WAVE OF KOSOVO REFUGEES TO USE THESSALONIKI AIRPORT
A second wave of refugees from Kosovo will pass through
Thessaloniki's Macedonia Airport tomorrow, in transit to Australia
where they will be granted temporary shelter.
They will arrive in Thessaloniki from FYROM by road
Approximately 400 people, mostly women and children, flew out
of Thessaloniki last Thursday headed for Australia. According to
reports, a total of 20,000 refugees will depart for various
destinations from the Macedonia Airport.
[05] BLACK SEA TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT BANK TO OPEN JUNE 1
The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) is to
embark on its operation on June 1, with the official inauguration
taking place later in the month.
The bank's budget, which is expected to be 150 million
dollars in 1999, will finance projects and programs funded jointly
with other credit organizations, such as the European Bank of
Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
The shareholders of the Black Sea Bank are the 11
member-states of the Black Sea Organization of Economic
Cooperation: Greece, Turkey, Russia, Romania,
Ukraine, Bulgaria, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Moldavia and
Albania.
[06] ALMOST UNANIMOUSLY, GREEKS OPPOSE NATO RAIDS ON SERBIA
With an almost unanimous rate, 99.5% of Greeks are opposed
to NATO's air strikes against Yugoslavia, while 99.3% of those
polled are against the use of ground forces, according to a survey
conducted by the Psychology Department of the Panteios University
in Athens.
According to the survey, conducted between April 29- May 5,
14% of those polled believe that Yugoslav President Slobodan
Milosevic should be tried for war crimes, while 25% believe that
U.S. President Bill Clinton, British Premier Toni Blair, NATO
commander general Wesley Clark and NATO chief Javier Solana should
also be prosecuted as war criminals.
More than half of those who responded to the survey (56%)
believe that the Greek government should have vetoed the
airstrikes.
[07] MITSOTAKIS WILL MEET WITH MILOSEVIC TOMORROW
Right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy honorary
president Konstantinos Mitsotakis will be in Belgrade this
evening.
Tomorrow, he is scheduled to meet with Yugoslav president
Slobodan Milosevic, the Patriarch of Serbia and other Yugoslav
officials.
[08] TSOCHATZOPOULOS ON THE PEACEKEEPING FORCE IN KOSOVO
Greek minister of defense Akis Tsochatzopoulos stated that
the increase in the number of the peacekeeping force is not a
guarantee that a solution is imminent and added that there is a
behind the scenes conflict of interests which blocks the efforts
aimed at finding a political solution.
Mr. Tsochatzopoulos stated that the Greek ships do not
participate in operations that are associated with war actions,
while he clarified that the number of Greek soldiers that will
take part in the peacekeeping force will be decided after the Euro-
parliament elections.
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[09] NATO INTENSIFIES RAIDS AGAINST YUGOSLAVIA
NATO aircraft continued to pound Yugoslavia last night,
targeting the building which houses the state-owned television
station in Novi Sad. Seven missile and bomb blows were dealt at
the high-voltage power transmission line near the town of
Obrenovac, 30 kilometers away from Belgrade. The partially-
restored power supply to the Yugoslav capital was again
interrupted at dawn.
Also, three missiles were fired at the building of the
Serbian Interior Ministry in the center of the city, although they
failed to explode.
According to the Yugoslav agency Tanjug, one person was
killed and five others were wounded during last night's raids in a
Serbian village, while a five-year-old child was wounded during
NATO raids over Kosovo.
[10] DIPLOMATIC EFFORTS CONTINUE IN YUGOSLAVIA
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott will fly to
Moscow today for further consultations over Kosovo. While in
Moscow, Mr. Talbott is expected to have talks with Russia's
Balkans envoy Viktor Chernomyrdin and Finnish President Marti
Ahtisaari.
Messrs. Ahtisaari and Chernomyrdin will travel to Belgrade
tomorrow where they will meet with Yugoslav President Slobodan
Milosevic
Meanwhile, the Allies have ratified a plan that allows for
the augmentation of the NATO military presence in FYROM to 45,000-
50,000 troops.
[11] GREEK FM TO MEET WITH US SECRETARY OF STATE TODAY
Greece's Foreign Minister George Papandreou is presently on a
four-day visit to the United States, where he will meet with the
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in Washington.
Mr. Papandreou will brief Ms. Albright on the Greek-Czech
initiative for a 48-hour suspension of NATO bombings in Yugoslavia
before any relevant resolution by the UN Security Council. China
has reportedly welcomed the Greek-Czech initiative.
[12] PRESIDENT OF GREECE TO CONDUCT OFFICIAL VISIT TO BULGARIA
The President of the Hellenic Republic Kostis
Stephanopoulos is to embark on an official visit to Bulgaria
today, where he will meet with President Petar Stoyanov and Prime
Minister Ivan Kostov with whom he will discuss issues of bilateral
interest and the latest developments in the Balkans.
The President's visit to Bulgaria was preceded by an official
visit by Greece's Defense Minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos, May 17,
who met with his Bulgarian counterpart Georgi Ananiev, foreign
minister Nadezda Michailova, foreign policy parliamentary
committee chairman Asen Agov and parliament speaker Jordan
Sokolov.
Messrs. Tsochatzopoulos and Ananiev stated that they
ascertained an identity of views concerning the Kosovo crisis.
Specifically, the two ministers stated that they advocate an
expeditious and peaceful settlement of the crisis through
diplomatic means.
Moreover, they stated that they support the deployment of
multi-national peace-keeping forces comprising NATO member and non-
member states which would guarantee the implementation of a peace
agreement.
[13] CHERNOMYRDIN:TODAY'S TALKS SHOULD LEAD TO END OF RAIDS
Russian presidential envoy on Yugoslavia Viktor Chernomyrdin
has stated that today's trilateral talks in Moscow "should lead to
an end to air strikes in Yugoslavia."
According to the Russian news agency Itar-Tass, Mr.
Chernomyrdin said that he will travel to Belgrade tomorrow
irrespective of the outcome of talks in Moscow.
He noted that only two key questions have to be agreed
at the talks in Moscow: the withdrawal of Serbian troops from
Kosovo and the structure of international presence in that
province.
He stressed that "Belgrade and (Yugoslav President Slobodan)
Milosevic are ready to accept many things, including the
participation of NATO countries, which are not actively involved
in combat actions, such as Greece or Portugal, to take part in
the international presence."
[14] TRIPARTITE HUMANITARIAN AID GIVEN TO RED CROSS IN KOSOVO
Five trucks with humanitarian aid from Greece, Russia and
Switzerland were passed over to the Red Cross Committee in Kosovo
yesterday, consisting of foods, hygiene articles and detergents.
Under the Focus initiative of the three countries, the
humanitarian aid is
weekly supplied to various regions of Yugoslavia. Yesterday's was
the fifth humanitarian convoy. In the previous dispatches of aid,
the trucks brought a field hospital of 40 beds, warm clothing and
medicines. The field hospital was placed in Prokupje.
[15] TALBOTT ADVOCATES STEP-BY-STEP APPROACH TO KOSOVO
United States First Deputy Secretary of State Strobe
Talbott, presently in Moscow for talks with Russian Foreign
Minister Igor Ivanov, stated today a large amount of important
work is yet to be done
Speaking prior to his meeting with Mr. Ivanov, Mr. Talbott
stressed that the sides will proceed step by step, gradually
resolving the most important matters.
"We are working, upon having rolled up our sleeves, and, to
my mind, working very well," he said.
Mr. Talbott added that "the Belgrade leadership, who have
taken up a tough stand", should agree to complying with a number
of most important demands put forward by the international
community as a whole.
He mentioned demands such as the return of many thousands of
refugees to their homes under conditions of safety and the
granting of a high degree of autonomy of local authorities.
[16] GREECE'S DEVELOPMENT MINISTER IN SOFIA TOMORROW
Greece's Development Minister Evangelos Venizelos will be in
Sofia, tomorrow, where he will inaugurate the new processing plant
established by Greek fruit juice firm, Florina SA.
The firm has invested six million dollars on converting the
former bakery in a
suburb of Sofia, bought for $640,000 in 1997, into a processing
plant capable of packaging fruit juices, nectar and pulp. It will
have the capacity to package 10,500 one-liter and 250-mg units per
hour.
[17] TALBOTT: BELGRADE HAS NOT MET NATO'S DEMANDS
Strobe Talbott met in Moscow with Russian foreign minister
Igor Ivanov. The US assistant secretary of state said after the
meeting that Belgrade has not met yet NATO's demands.
Russian mediator Victor Chernomyrdin, before his decisive
meeting this afternoon with Finnish president Maarti Ahtisaari and
Strobe Talbott, reiterated Russia's demand for the immediate end
of the bombing.
[18] VUJOVIC: WE WILL NOT YIELD TO THE BOMBING
In spite of the fact that we want peace more than anything
else in order to stop the irrational destruction of our country,
we will not yield to the bombing, we will never give way, stated
Yugoslav deputy foreign minister Neboisa Vujovic in an exclusive
interview to MPA. At the same time, he expressed the discontent of
the Belgrade government for the delay in the promotion of the
peace process.
Mr. Vujovic called on the Kosovo refugees to return to their
homes, praised Greece's stance in the crisis and the initiatives
of the Greek foreign ministry, while he expressed strong concern
regarding the likelihood for the conflict to spread to the whole
region in case the NATO bombing does not end immediately.
Mr. Vujovic stated that Belgrade has two strategic goals
namely, to safeguard the national sovereignty and work with all
its powers for a political solution to the problem in Kosovo. He
said that Belgrade's position regarding the initiative by Russian
mediator Victor Chernomyrdin is positive, but it is not satisfied
with its slow pace.
He said that the ethnic Albanians must return to their homes
because there is no reason for them to continue to be refugees,
stressing that since April 6 all action against the Kosovo
Liberation Army, KLA, has stopped and on May 9 a decision was made
by the armed forces headquarters for the withdrawal of army and
police forces. He said that this decision is being implemented in
spite of the fact that the ethnic Albanian rebels continue to bomb
the Yugoslav forces. He said that the problem should be resolved
within the framework of a broad autonomy that will mean equal
rights for all ethnic minorities in Kossovo, adding that the G-8
decisions reached in Bonn have been accepted by Belgrade and
constitute a serious basis for the continuation of the
negotiations aimed at reaching a diplomatic solution. However, the
points that are being mentioned in the Bonn declaration must be
further clarified.
Responding to the question if there will be peace by next
week, Mr. Vujovic stated that the facts speak for themselves. The
1.200 people, who lost their lives from the bombing, the 6.000
injured, the 40 bridges that were destroyed as well as the
hospitals, universities and schools and the damaged television
buildings in Belgrade and Novi Sad, show that there is no real
interest in finding a political solution soon.
Regarding the accusations coming from NATO that the ethnic
cleansing of the Albanians in Kosovo continues and the bombing is
being held for the protection of their human rights, Mr. Vujovic
stated that most of the people who are being killed by the NATO
bombs are Albanians and not Serbs, Montenegrans, gypsies or
others, wondering who are protecting those bombs. He said that a
day before the start of the bombing there was not even one tent,
not even one refugee at the borders of Kossovo with FYROM and
Albania.
On the peace initiatives undertaken by the Greek government
for the solution of the problem, Mr. Vujovic stated that all the
initiatives that seek the end of the bombing are welcomed and
added that Greece with the initiative it has undertaken as a
member of NATO has opened the way for other countries to follow
calling on the alliance to stop the bombing. He said that within
NATO the pressure exerted by Washington blocks the development of
initiatives by other countries, but the European public opinion is
reacting and even in the United States 56% of the population is
against the bombing, while in Europe the percentage is bigger.
On the proposal for the creation of peace zones through which
the humanitarian aid will pass, Mr. Vujovic stated that the logic
to create specific safe heaven zones outside which the war will go
on is irrational. Belgrade is in favor of safe zones if they cover
the whole of the country from north to south and from west to the
east.
He concluded that the bombing must end now, while a political
solution should be reached that will safeguard the integrity of
Yugoslavia and Kossovo, adding that anything else will be
dangerous.
[19] PRESIDENT STEPHANOPOULOS IS IN SOFIA
President of the Hellenic Republic Kostis Stephanopoulos is
in Sofia and this afternoon he will meet with his Bulgarian
counterpart Petar Stoyanov. Mr. Stephanopoulos stated that the
Greek-Bulgarian relations are setting an example and that with Mr.
Stoyanov he will discuss bilateral issues as well as, the
situation in Kosovo.
At noon today, Mr. Stephanopoulos visited the Alexander
Nefski cathedral, while he is scheduled to have meetings with
prime minister Ivan Kostov and Greek students studying in
Bulgarian universities.
[20] BELGRADE: THE TRIAL OF TWO EMPLOYEES OF THE "CARE AUSTRALIA"
HUMANITARIAN ORGANIZATION HAS OPENED
The trial of two employees of the Australian humanitarian
organization "Care Australia" who are accused of espionage opened
in Belgrade today.
Australian nationals Steve Pratt and Peter Wallas were
arrested by the Serb authorities on March 31, while trying to
cross over to Croatia from Yugoslavia and according to Belgrade,
they had confidential documents in their possession that they were
going to deliver to NATO.
Initially, Belgrade had not reported any information on the
arrest of the two Australians but 12 days after their capture
Steve Pratt went on the Serb state television and admitted that he
was working as a spy.
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